Knife



April 13, 1943. E. HYATT 2,316,246

KNIFE Filed Oct. 21, 1959 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 April 13, 1943. E. HYATT 2,316,246

KNIFE Filed Oct. 21, 1939 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented Apr. 13, 1943 U NIT E D STAT EiS PATENT" OF F ICE.

KNIFE Elmer Hyatt, Cleveland, Ohio- Applioati'on October-21, 1939;. Serial N0..300-,647

4 Claims.

This invention, as indicated, relatesto a knife structure. More particularly; it comprises a. knife structure wherein a plurality of elements pivoted together form. the means for" moving the. blade into. open and. closed. position, and locking the same in each of. said positions, and forming the handle of the knife after full movementto either open or closed position. The invention also includes a knife wherein the use of, springs'iseliminated, and wherein a. portion. of the body of the knife serves as a locking element for the-same. The invention also. includes a simple method of manufacturing a knife structure wherein multiple bladed knives may be provided, and. wherein also two single units may be combined through the use of a single pivot pin in providing a knife structure having a plurality of blades.

The principal object of the present. invention is to provide a knife structure having a body memher, a blade, and 'a guard so related that the same cooperate to lock the blade in open and chased position- Another object of the invention is to provide a knife structure wherein a body and a guard element associated therein may be formed of strip material readily fabricated at a minim-um of'cost and providing: a housing for the blade wherein closed position, or as a means for opening the blade and thereafter locking the same when in open position.

Another object of the invention is to provide a knife structure which may be formed as a single unit or united through the use of one or more common pivot pins into a multiple series of unitshaving the desired number of; blades.

Other and further objects of the invention will appear in the course of the following description.

To the accomplishment of the foregoing and related ends, said invention, then, consists of the means and method hereinafter fully described and particularly pointed out in the claims, the annexed drawing and the following: description setting: forth in detail certain structures and methods embodying the invention, such disclosed means constituting, however, but several ofva-rious forms in: which the principle of the invention may be used.

In said. annexed drawings:

Fig. 1 is a plan ViBW drawn to actual size, showing a single bladed knife embodyin the prineiples of the invention:

Fig. 2 is an edgewise View as seen from the lower edge of the structure illustratedirr Fig. l.

i Fig. 3 is a. perspective view of the structure shown in Figs. 1 and 2 with therblade in full open;

positionandthe guard ready. to be moved to full closedposition for locking the blade and forming the handlefor the device.

Fig.,4 is a plan view of the structure shown in Figs.,1 to; 3 with the blade in full open position and the guard locked to the handle and locking the blade in its open position.

Fig; 5 is a plan view of a modified form ofknife structure'embodying: the principles of'the inventionwherein a, double bladed knife is provided, the blades: bein pivoted. at opposite ends of the body member.

Fig. 6 is an edgewise view asseen from the lower portion. of the structure illustrated in Fig. 5.

Fig.7: is a plan view showing-the knife structure illustrated in Figs. 5 and 6 with the blade and guard, members thereof in. partly open position.

Fig. 8 is a plan view of a multiple bladed knife wherein the blades are-mounted on a common pivot point, and; wherein the body of the knife is made up of double strip members permitting. theconversion or such knife'in-to two single'units through the provision of an independent pivot pin for each: of; such units- Fig. 9 is an edgewise-view as seen fromthe lower edge of the structure illustrated in Fig. 8;

Figl'O is a plan view of the structure shown in Figs. 8' and 9 showing the handle and blades in partly open, position; and

Figs. 11- and 12 are exploded perspective views showing indetail the pivot: construction with lugs and blade tang in: their various positions during the cycles of opening and closing;

A-sis clearly shown in Figs. 1 to 45 of the drawings, and also, in. the exploded perspective views comprising Figures 11 and 12 mypreferred type of knife structure comprises a body member preferabiy formed of a strip of. sheet material bentbackwardly upon itself to form a boss'2, andhaving at its free. edge, downwardly turned portion 3 spacing said boss from the adjacent portion of the body. Through the provision of notches-4. on each side: of the turned over portion of the strip, means for holding a terminal ring 5. in operative relation to the-body is provided. The: boss is prefierably provided with a notch 601" V-shaped: outline: as seen from above, said notchbeing in: the form of a triangular perforation through the strip of metal; lThe body portion of the structure is preferably provided with recesses l on opposite side edges at a point spaced slightly from: the boss 2 to permit free operation of' the guard: member, as will. be presently described. The body portion opposite the position of the boss is preferably'provlded with an integral lug 3 struck upwardly, said lug forming a limit stop for the blade when in open position.

Cutaway corners 9 may be provided at the end of the body portion adjacent said lug. Said body portion is also provided with an aperture l 0, slightly offset from the center toward said lug 8 to receive a pivot pin ll upon which a guard member l2 and a blade 13 are pivotally mounted. The blade member may have substantially the same form as an ordinary knife blade, but in order to provide for compactness of structure such blade may be formed with a V-shaped notch M, such notch providing a recess for receiving the operative lug l provided on the end of the guard member. If desired, an additional lug it may be provided on the guard member on the same side with and spaced from the lug l5 heretofore described. Said lug member l6 serves as a blade retaining element when the knife is in closed position. Cutaway ends 18 may be provided on the guard. member adjacent the pivot pin, one of said ends carrying the downwardly turned blade operative lug l5. It should be noted that'the lug I5 is of the full thickness of the blade and may ride upon the inner face of the body member, particularly when the guard is moved to fully open or fullyclosed position. Through the engagement of said lug with the body member an adequate degree of resiliency is provided against which the spring portion of the guard member may react while being moved irictionally over the boss 2 to interlocking engagement with the notch 6 heretofore described in order to insure safe locking engagement with said notch. The guard member is provided with a triangular projection I9 of a size to snugly fit the notch 6, and to be held resiliently therein through the spring action of the guard member I2.

The inner face of the guard member i2 may be provided with a serrated surface providing a nail file, and the projecting triangular projection I9, besides serving the function of a locking element for the device, may be used as a. finger nail cleaning device when the guard member is opened into parallelism with the body member at one-half of its full path of travel.

In order to have the parts rotate about the pivot pin with adequate clearance for the lugs the pivot pin may be offset slightly from the central line of the assembled structure, where a narrow width of knife structure is desired, but where a greater width is in View the pivot pin may be placed eX- actly in the center.

In the modified type of my structure, shown in Figs. 5 to 7, inclusive, the body 2| may be provided with a boss 22 which may be secured to the body by means of a locking element provided by the head of a set-screw 23 and will hold the guard member 24 which is provided with a suitable aperture 25 to engage thereover, the apertured end of the guard being bent inwardly to a slight extent to .provide blade clearance and a resilient engagement with the head of the set-screw 23. The guard member 24 is engaged with the body member 2| by means of a pivot pin 26 which also serves as the pivot for the knife blad 21 which is disposed between the body member and the guard member. The pivot pin 26 may be in the form of a screw-threaded stud 28 screw-threadedly engaging the body member at the end provided with the boss and having a lock nut 29 to securely hold the parts in central relation. The knife blade, it will be noted in Fig. 7, will have the sharp edge downwardly when closed, and a limit stop 36 will hold the blade in closed alignment with the body 75 portion. The blade is moved to closing position by means of a lug 3! on the guard member which will engage the back edge of the knife blade as it is turned to closing position and remove such blade into the closed position just described, the aperture being then looked over the stud 23, heretofore described. The opening of the blade is brought about through the action of a stud 32 on the guard member adjacent its pivoted end which bears against the underside of the blade structure adjacent th pivot point.

Substantially a similar guard and blade construction may be provided at the opposite end of the body member just described, there bein an additional boss 33 with a pivot pin 34 engaged therein at the opposite end thereof similar to the pivot pin 26, heretofore described, such pivot pin holding a blade 35 and a guard member 36 in pivotedrelation to the body on the opposite side from the blade and guard member heretofore described. The blade 35, as shown in Fig. '7, when closed will have its cutting edge turned in an upward direction, whereas the blade 27 heretofore described has its cutting edge turned in a downward direction when positioned in the manner shown in Fig. '7. The guard member 36 is provided withan aperture 31, and has studs 38, 39, adjacent the pivot point to move the blade to closed and open position respectively. A lug 40 on the body serves as a limit stop for the blade when in open position; the lug 38 in addition to moving the blade into closed position serves to hold the same locked against accidental displacement when the aperture 31 is engaged over the stud 38. The studs 32 and 39 (Figs. 5 to 7) correspond in position and function to the lug l5 (Figs. 1, 2, 3, 4, 11, and 12) in opening theknife blade, and also in applying locking spring tension to the end of the guard member opposite the end on which it is mounted. The studs 3| and 38 (Figs. 5 to '7) are closure locks for the blade corresponding in position and function to the lug It (Figs. 1, 2, 3, 4, 11, and 12).

The modified form of construction shown in Figs. 8, 9 and 10 provides a doubled bladed knife somewhat similar to the knife'shown in Figs. 5 to 7, but in place of having a pivot pin for the blades at each end of the body member, having a single pivot pin upon which two blade members and two body members are pivoted. This construction, similar to the construction shown in Figs. 5 to 7, may be converted into a pair of knife structures through the removal of a pivot pin and the clamping of each set of parts together by means of individual pins. The body member is preferably formed of two members 5!, 52, which may be interlocked with each other by means of a tongue 53 having an aperture 54 for a chain or the like, such tongue engaging within a loop extension 55 formed on the companion body member 52. A boss 55 may serve as an ornamental handle element when secured to the sides of the respective body members. The body members will lie parallel to each other in interlocked relation while the knife is utilized as a double bladed knife which, by using suitable blades offset to coact with each other; the body members 5 I, 52, may serve as the handle element of a shear with the blades coacting with each other as shear blades. The body member is provided at the end opposite the handle just described with a pivot pin 5?, upon which are engaged blade members 58 associated with a guard member 58 on the outer side ofthe body member 5! and with a blade member 6| and an associated guard member 62 on the outer side of the body member 52. Each of the guard members 59 and 62 may be provided with a blade opening and closing sets of lugs 63, 64, respectively, and may be formed with eyes 65, B6, on opposite sides of the guard members 62 and 59, respectively, to permit easy opening of such guard members by the user. The lugs 63 (Figs. 8 to 10) correspond in position and function to the lug l (Figs. 1, 2, 3, 4, 11, and 12) and to the studs 32 and 39 (Figs. 5 to 7), and the lugs 64 (Figs. 8 to 10) correspond in position and function to the lug l6 (Figs. 1, 2, 3, 4, 11, and 12) and to the studs 3| and 38 (Figs. 5 to '7) as set forth above.

Opposite the eyes 65, 66, the guard members are cut away providing recesses 61, 68, respectively, to permit easy access to the eye on the companion guard member. Each guard member at its extreme end is turned downwardly to provide a locking flange 69 having teeth ll, 12, engaging on opposite sides of the body member adjacent the handle 55. The body members may have narrow neck portions 13, 14, to permit free access to the eye portions of the guard members.

Other modes of applying the principle of my invention may be employed instead of those explained, change being made as regards the structure and method herein disclosed, provided the means stated by any of the following claims or the equivalent of such stated means be employed.

I therefore particularly point out and distinctly claim as my invention:

1. A device of the character described having in combination a body member, a blade member pivoted to one end of said body member of resilient strip material, and a guard member mounted on the pivot of said blade member, and having integral marginal struck-up lugs cooperating with said body member, one of said lugs bearing frictionally on said body member to increase the locking spring tension on said guard, and said lugs engaging said blade member to move said blade to open and closed position, respectively.

2. A device of the character described having in combination a body member, a boss adjacent one end of said body member providing a locking seat, and a guard member of resilient strip material pivoted to the opposite end of said body member, having at its end adjacent said pivot a bearing member to ride frictionally over the body member to apply locking spring tension to the guard member when said guard member is moved into closed engagement with said boss.

3. A device of the character described having in combination a body member, a blade m mber and a flexible guard member pivoted to said body member, a boss providing a locking element on said body member, means associated with said members to permit movement of said guard member over a 360 degree path of movement to open and closed position and said blade member over a path of movement of degrees to open and closed position, and a bearing lug on said guard member adjacent said pivot to force the free flexible end thereof into engagement with the locking element of said boss for locking said blade and guard members in open and closed position.

4. A pocket knife having a handle portion made of strip metal of a resilient character and comprising a body member and a guard member cooperating therewith, a pivot pin engaged in offset relation through said body member and guard member, a blade member mounted on said pivot pin between the same, cooperating locking elements on the free ends of said body member and said guard member, respectively, and a bearing lug on said guard member adjacent said pivot to force said locking elements into engagement.

ELMER HYA'I'T. 

